The present invention relates in general to firearms magazines and in particular to a new and useful high capacity magazine which is particularly suited for automatic and semi-automatic weapons, and which includes a storage drum which carries a multiplicity of cartridges in a spiral path with the longitudinal axes of the cartridges lying substantially perpendicular to the firing direction for the weapon.
High capacity magazines are known for use primarily with automatic weapons. One example is the drum type magazine in which a multiplicity of cartridges are stored with their longitudinal axes lying parallel to a firing direction of the weapon. The drum is engaged to the bottom of the weapon near its firing chamber. While a large number of cartridges can thus be stored and supplied to the weapon, the drum is awkward and bulky. The drum greatly increases the effective width of the weapon since it extends to both sides of the weapon.
Other magazines are also known which carry the cartridges in a straight or somewhat curved line. The magazines are attached to the bottom of a weapon with the cartridges being fed one at a time and upwardly to the weapon using a spring connected to a plate-like follower. So as to carry a large number of cartridges, such magazines must be exceptionally long. This again produces an awkward and bulky configuration for the weapon plus magazine combination.